The film, an adaptation of the Shusako Endo novel, concerns two Jesuit priests in the 17th century who attempt to spread Christianity to Japan, only to encounter swift and harsh pushback. Names like Gael Bernal, Daniel Day-Lewis and Javier Bardem have been linked to the project, but currently, the cast includes Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe and Adam Driver.

Based on a script written by Jay Cocks, who previously worked with Scorsese on 2002's Gangs of New York, the new movie will be set in the 17th century and follow a pair of Jesuit priests who travel to Japan in the hopes of both spreading their faith and locating their mentor.

The movie is an adaptation of Shusaku Endo's novel of the same name and follows a pair of Jersuit Priests as they travel to Japan in the 17th century to try and spread the word of Christianity and find their mentor. What they end up being faced with, however, is terrifying violence and persecution

Martin Scorsese's Silence is on its way, leapfrogging many other project's on the filmmaker's dance card to become the next title in his prolific body of work. The story, based on the novel by Shushako Endo, involves Jesuit priests in the 17th century who travel to China in an attempt to advance the word of the Lord. Crisis strikes when one of them displays a conflict of faith, leading the priests to discover that their religion has been forced underground, subject to persecution and torture.

Garfield would play Father Rodrigues, a 17th-century Portugese Jesuit priest who journeys to Japan when he learns that his mentor is wavering in his faith and contemplating leaving the Church. The mentor in the film has not been cast, though Variety reports that Ken Watanabe will play a translator who accompanies Garfield’s character on his mission.

This is a story we've heard again, and again, and again. But with its financing lined up, it seems like this really could be Scorsese's shot to make the movie he's so long to shoot. Depending on the scheduling requirements of his not yet announced cast, Silence could shoot in Taiwan as early as July 2014.

Martin Scorsese has been working regularly for almost the span of his entire career, putting out a new movie every couple of years or so since the 1970s, but for the last decade or so there has been two projects in particular that have never been able to fully grab the Oscar-winning director's full attention.

For those unfamiliar with the story, the book is set in 17th century Japan, where two Jesuit priests face persecution as they spread their gospel and search for their mentor. According to IMDb, Jay Cocks (who also scripted Gangs of New York) wrote the screenplay, but it's hard to know how long that information has been around and/or if something has changed.

Earlier today it was reported that Martin Scorsese would be taking on The Wolf of Wall Street, an adaptation of the memoir by Jordan Belfort, as a project to film this summer with long-time collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio as his lead. While Scorsese is indeed once again attached to direct The Wolf of Wall Street, it will not be filming this summer.